


The Spirit Of The Season

by AsagiStilinski



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe- Werewolves are still a thing, Anxiety, Crossdressing, Cuddling & Snuggling, Halloween, M/M, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Misunderstandings, Non-Sexual Crossdressing, Older Stiles/Younger Derek, Rites of Passage, Shy Derek Hale, but not by much, sterekhalloween3, sterekweek2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-27 18:46:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12588252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsagiStilinski/pseuds/AsagiStilinski
Summary: To be fair, Stiles had told him that he was the Spirit Of Halloween, it wasn't his fault that Derek hadn't believed him





	The Spirit Of The Season

**Author's Note:**

> The last theme for Sterek Week ;_; I'm disappointed, I wanted to do something much longer but this one wanted to end where it wanted to end so here we are, oh well, there'll always be next year's Halloween theme ;)

"I really don't know about this..."

"Come on Derek, it's tradition! We've all worn it our first time, I'm sure it looks great on you!"

He doubted that- _highly_

But he knew that there was no use in arguing about it or trying to get out of it

His sister had been right when she said it was a tradition, one that had spanned back through generations and generations- some of who Derek probably didn't even know the names of, and if there was one thing Derek never messed with

That's right, they went all the way back to the beginning, before the Hale clan ever became what it was or what it was known for

To not honor that just because he was a little embarrassed was ... well, he wasn't sure if "disrespectfull" was quite the right term but it was in that vein

He didn't want to break tradition just because he was a little uncomfortable, and if this is what everyone else in his family wore on their special days then so be it

It wasn't THAT bad he supposed

The sudden excited rapping on the dressing room door threw him off guard, his heart suddenly racing from the jolt and his face turning red from the embarrassment over his heart's reaction

"Come on out! Let us see!"

Yeah, just because Derek was going to wear this costume it didn't mean he was going to wear it any longer than he absolutely had to- or that he was going to be seen in public wearing it

He'd wear it for Halloween night as per tradition, but that was it

"No sneak preveiws, I'll wear it for Halloween and that's it," he insisted, finally tugging his shirt back on and yanking the door to the dressing room open, a disappointed frown on his face as he stared at his younger cousin, who had been standing at the door, presumably getting ready to go down the list of reasons of why he should go ahead and show everyone what he looked like wearing the costume

"No sneak preveiws," he insisted a second time, a little bit firmer now, though not having lost the initial softness he had

If he was going to stay true to anything in all of this mess, it would atleast be that no one would see him in this costume until Halloween

 

~+~

 

Derek couldn't sleep

It was the night before Halloween and he absolutely couldn't sleep

He had been tossing and turning for hours now, kicking blankets off, pulling more on, doing everything in his power to atleast TRY to get some sleep, but nothing was working

He had even tried the age old warm milk trick, but it hadn't worked at all

No matter what he did, he just couldn't sleep

He was anxious and unnerved already, but add to that the depression and general listlessness he had felt lately and it was just a recipe for disaster

No wonder he couldn't sleep...

But he needed to

He needed to sleep so that he would have atleast _some_ alertness to him on Halloween night

The last thing he wanted was to be exhausted and only half-awake during Halloween night but he didn't have much choice

As he laid there, staring up at the ceiling and wishing that he could just fall asleep, he started to wonder if he even belonged there, if he even belonged at the Halloween party

It may sound stupid when put in that context but the party was a big deal, it was a rite of passage in most ways, and Derek seriously wondered if it was a rite he deserved to take on- or if he even wanted to take it on

Maybe that was why he couldn't sleep in the first place

Maybe, deep down, some part of him knew that he didn't deserve what was coming tommorrow...

And if anything, that only served to keep him awake even more

 

~+~

 

"Awww, you look so adorable!!!"

Derek's face was going to match the color of his cloak if it tuned any redder, and his family seemed bound and determined to get him there

"I like the red, very _you_ ,"

He groaned, yanking the hood of his cape over his head in an attempt to hide his face

"Shut up Cora...."

Atleast his older sister had been sincerely enthused at seeing him in his Little Red Riding Hood costume, Cora was just getting a kick out of it

"You know-"

"You shut up too Malia,"

He wasn't sure _exactly_ what she was going to say, but he had a good enough idea of it and that was all he needed to know that whatever it was that she wanted to say, it wasn't going to be good

"Oh come on Derek, lighten up a little! It's the most wonderfull day of the year, no need to be so gloomy,"

He knew that his older sister was right

Every year since he was old enough to understand the concept of Halloween, he had been the biggest fan of it in the world

He was always so extremely happy whenever Halloween came around, so eager to do anything related to the holiday, and just knowing how down and tired and depressed he was currently was killing him inside as it was

He had to keep trying though

He had to get over his nerves and his meloncholy and not bring down everyone else

"You're sure to find someone in that outfit, so don't worry so much,"

Well, that wasn't quite exactly what was keeping him down but it was certainly a concern...

"I don't know," he muttered back, nervously smoothing down the skirt of his dress- if you could even _call_ something this short a dress- and glancing at the floor

He had never been good with people, he wasn't particularly charming and he tended to give off an air of "Do not approach", neither were especially good qualities to have when trying to attract someone

"You will, I promise, look... I know what you're feeling, the first time is always the most terrifying, but it'll get easier, just ... don't even worry about that right now ok? Just concentrate on the party! That'll be the fun part anyhow,"

Derek nodded, forcing an anxious smile as his sister grabbed his arm

"Yeah... thanks Laura,"

He wasn't entirely excited about the party either, he and parties had never mixed well, he always ended up being a wallflower, but this night was important

It was the most important night of the year, not just for his family but for everyone in the community, he wasn't going to let his nerves and low mood get everyone else down

He glanced up at the window, taking in the fact that the sun was only just starting to set

They'd probably get to the party by moon rise, so they would be some of the first people there

Not surprisingly, his family had always been some of the most enthusiastic about Halloween, even in their community

"Come on, we don't want to be late," Laura urged, giving him a gentle tug as Cora darted towards the door

Derek gave a quiet snort, smirking slightly at that

"Trust me, I'm sure we won't be late,"

 

~+~

 

Just as he had feared, Derek found himself staying by the food table from the moment he arrived, not actually involved in the social aspect of the party at all

The event was much more.... pun-filled than he expected

"Monster Mash" was playing, there was cheesy decor all over the place, and every peice of food on the table had something to do with Halloween, from the pumpkin shaped rice krispy treats to the mini hot dogs that looked like mummies and even the "witch's brew" punch wich, for his own sake, he seriously hoped was just apple cider with green food coloring in it

There was even an elaborate veggie platter in the shape of an owl

It was... actually kind of cool if he was being honest

Right now he was pretending to be far more invested in the ghost shaped cookies than he really was, wile trying to get his mind focused on something more pleasant than the impending _rite of passage_

He wanted to ENJOY Halloween, not worry about it, and yet....

"Oh thank GOD someone else here who likes food! I was starting to worry I was the only person here who actually _eats_ ,"

Derek jumped, eyes wide and heart skipping a beat as he glanced over at the stranger beside him

The guy was dressed in an elaborate steampunk costume, complete with a top hat, a cane, and even moving gears on his vest- he wasn't sure if that was magic that was moving them or if they actually worked but either way he was impressed

And the man was... kind of rediculously beautifull

With chesnut hair, pale skin dotted with moles, plush pink lips, and copper eyes that seemed to practically _sparkle_

(He hoped _that_ was magic because he wasn't sure if anyone's eyes were _supposed_ to sparkle)

"Well... I don't know how many people here eat human food," he offered, not entirely sure how else to reply to the stranger's enthusiasm

"Wich is exactly why I made sure to provide plenty of non-human food for our non-human-food-eating pals, ergo, the bowl of blood punch over there and the spider bites right next to you made of _real_ spiders,"

Derek went pale, suddenly extremely glad he hadn't bothered with the spider bites

There were so many different scents that his nose wasn't used to in this place that he hadn't really noticed the different scents of any of the food...

"You didn't do anything to the cookies did you?" he asked worriedly

"Relax, the only things in those cookies are sugar, flour, chocolate chips... you get the picture,"

Still, he took the next bite a little more slowly than he usually would have, as if that would somehow get his nose to process any especially odd scents- just in case

"I haven't seen you around here before, is this your first time?"

Derek nodded shyly, finishing his cookie and glancing down at the floor, suddenly remembering his mostly exposed legs and feeling his face heat up as he pulled his cloak a little tighter around himself, as if that would somehow hide what the stranger had already seen

Somebody just kill him...

"That's cool, I've been here a few times now, it gets better every year,"

"It does?"

Derek hadn't meant to sound as surprised by that as he did but ... _well..._

"Sure it does, why would they get worse?" he replied with a small shrug

"I didn't mean to imply that, just.... I don't know, I guess after a wile wouldn't you expect something to stay the same? They've putting this thing on for centuries right? Wouldn't it just be natural to assume that at a certain point the quality can't get much higher?"

Sure as the world advanced around them the parties were bound to get better- the costumes alone were automatically better than anything they could have put together a hundred years ago, but he would think that from year to year things couldn't change that much

"That's where you're wrong my freind, the longer you do something the more you learn about it, and the more you learn the more you can change things for the better, experiment, improve, you know? Plus as the human world gets more involved with Halloween it just makes things easier for us, better costumes, better decorations, better ideas to make punny food-"

"Not so much better music," Derek teased, pretending to wince when "'Witch Doctor" started to play- because it _seriously_ grated on sensitive werewolf ears

Hell it probably grated pretty badly on HUMAN ears too

"Sure! These days you've got Florence + The Machine and the American Horror Story soundtrack, just to name a few, we're just running some of the older music first for nostalgia,"

"'We'?" he asked in mild surprise

"So you did more for the party than just the food?" he guessed

"Yep, I run the thing,"

Now he knew this guy was just trying to pull a prank on him

The Spirit Of Halloween was the one who always ran these things, it had been that way for hundreds of years, and wile he knew that the new Spirit was considerably young, he failed to believe THE great Spirit was someone so.....

~~Cute~~

Spazztic

"You?"

The sarcasm and skepticism in that single word was practically suffocating

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself didn't I? I'm Stiles Stilinski," he offered, holding his hand out towards Derek politely

Well, "Stilinski" WAS the Spirit's family name, but anyone could call themselves that

And what the hell kind of a name was "Stiles"?

The Spirit always had some ghastly name that no one could pronounce, hence just calling them "The Spirit Of Halloween", "The Great Spirit" or even just "The Spirit"

And although "Stiles" was certainly a weird name, it wasn't anything as ancient or mysterious or regal as what The Spirit usually went by

"Sure," Derek said skeptickally, the disbeleif more than clearly present in his voice

"And you are?" Stiles asked, tilting his head

"Derek Hale," the wolf finally conceded, giving the stranger's hand a shake

He may not be The Spirit, but he was the only one who had even glanced at Derek until now and he felt kind of... greatfull? In debt? Something for that....

"Ohhh so YOU'RE the Hale who's having his first time tonight huh? Wow, must be pretty exciting,"

No, no it really wasn't

But he couldn't exactly say that, especially not to a stranger, he hadn't even told Laura that he was dreading his upcoming rite

He couldn't tell someone who he hadn't even known ten minutes ago, especially some random prankster who was trying to pass himself off as The Spirit

"I guess so," he finally relented, not knowing how to make himself sound more sincere than that

Stiles didn't seem at all convinced, but atleast he was polite enough not to say anything about it

"You know, these parties may be fun, but I always get kind of antsy being all cooped up on Halloween night, I'm gonna split for a little wile and get some fresh air, do you want to come with me?"

Derek blinked in surprise at the invitation

He didn't know why Stiles would possibly want to spend time with a complete stranger, especially outside of the party, but apparently he did...

Something about this should probably be screaming "Stranger Danger" by now but oddly enough, it wasn't

He wasn't sure how to handle that as it was...

He glanced over his shoulder at the rest of the party, watching as Laura joked around with some girl and Cora danced with a curly-haired guy and .. he wasn't sure where his cousin had gone but she was probably stirring up trouble wherever it was

They wouldn't miss him if he was only gone for a few minutes right?

And nothing about Stiles screamed that he should be worried- not that that necessarily meant anything, given Derek's track record, but still-so...

He glanced back at the other man, eyebrows raising curiously

"What did you have in mind?"

 

~+~

 

"You don't think this is a little childish?"

"Oh please, you haven't seen anything yet," Stiles beamed

"So am I to take that to mean it gets MORE childish?" Derek asked teasingly

Stiles just snorted at that, gently nudging Derek further behind the tree and peering out from behind it himself

"I can't believe human kids really do this..."

"Well, they don't usually, but every now and then that Great Pumpkin thing gets around and someone's older brother decides to play a prank on them..."

"So ... you're going to help the bully by pranking them further?" Derek asked in confusion

Stiles was a little mischevious- .. well, more than a little- but he didn't seem _mean_ the way this would certainly imply

"Shhhh, you'll see," he encouraged

Derek rolled his eyes, but decided to go along with it

Whatever he said...

The wolf moved a little bit closer, glancing over Stiles' shoulder and watching as a couple of kids started into the pumpkin patch

"Watch and learn Pup," Stiles encouraged under his breath

Derek wasn't sure how he felt about someone- namely someone he hadn't even met an hour ago- calling him "Pup", but now wasn't the time

He braced himself, watching as the kids wandered down into the patch and settled down in front of the larger pumpkins

He watched Stiles carefully as he wove a few strands of magic, a soft purple glow dripping from his fingertips

The pumpkin behind the kids started to tremble, and then that trembling gradually turned into a shake

The kids hopped to their feet, squeals and shouts filling the air as the pumpkin shook harder and harder, and Derek waited for something terrifying to happen

Spiders, blood, something undead...

He was expecting almost anything

...

Anything except what actually happened

The top of the pumpkin blew straight off, and what errupted out of it was... candy....

Loads and loads of candy, an entire SHOWER of it

The kids were, understandably, having fits of excitement, trying to catch and gather as much as they could to put in their trick-or-treat baskets

It was like a massive party right there in the pumpkin patch

"So this is Halloween for you huh?" Derek asked with a small smirk

"Oh you haven't seen ANYTHING yet," Stiles repeated with a bright grin

"See, these kids get the candy, right? They go home and whoever put them up to this asks 'Where did you get the candy?', the kids tell them and, inevitably, the prankster and their stupid freinds come out to get free candy out of a pumpkin, THAT'S when the real fun happens, because when the _second_ pumpkin errupts they'll get covered in fake blood and spiders,"

"You make fake blood and fake spiders?" Derek guessed, glancing down at Stiles as his grin widened

_"Nope,"_

Ok, that was... admittedly pretty good

"So we just wait here until the next group comes along?"

"No way! I'll know when they get here, we'll come back then, but in the mean time, how do you feel about a little trick-or-treating of our own?"

Admittedly, Derek was intrigued

And Stiles hadn't steered him wrong so far, even though he had had his doubts about this pumpkin patch idea it had actually turned out to be pretty fun

Maybe whatever Stiles had in mind for this would be entertaining too

 

~+~

 

"Are you cold? You keep pulling on your cloak, I could manifest a warmer one for you if you want,"

"No no, it isn't that," Derek said quietly

Actually, he was a little warm with this cloak on

California wasn't exactly known for it's chilly Halloween evenings

Stiles went quiet for a moment, eyes scanning the wolf up and down- wich _really_ didn't help with how self-conscious he already felt

"You aren't very comfortable in that, are you?"

"No... but it's tradition, every Halloween that a Hale comes of age they have to dress as Little Red Riding Hood... and this is the only one that would fit me..."

There had been a few less skimpy costumes but none of them had fit, unfortunately...

"And you feel compelled to go along with this tradition?" Stiles asked

"Well... yes, everyone in my family has done it, both of my sisters, even my cousin, although Malia nearly shredded the thing when it was her turn..."

He had laughed at the time but now it wasn't quite so funny

"Malia... isn't she the one dressed as Freddy Kruger?"

"Yeah,"

"Mmm.... that makes sense," Stiles agreed slowly

"Isn't she a little younger than you though?"

"Yeah, she and my sister Cora both are, but female wolves mature faster than males remember? So she and Cora both did it when they were seventeen, now that I'm twenty-one it's my turn, I'm the last one left so..."

"You're only twenty-one? Awwwwww, you look a little older than that though,"

"Awwww"?

That was ... kind of different

And weird

But then, everything about Stiles was different and weird, he supposed it sort of fit...

"And how old are _you_?"

"Twenty-six,"

So he wasn't THAT much older...

The "Awww" seemed inappropriate knowing that, but again- Stiles was a little out there, so it was fitting enough

"I started going to these things when I was eighteen and took over last year,"

So he was still trying to pass himself off as The Spirit Of Halloween huh?

Well, whatever, it was none of Derek's business that he was trying to hide who he was, that was part of the fun of Halloween anyway, being someone you aren't

And Derek even kind of liked being Little Red Riding Hood, it was wearing this in public- and... admittedly, having his legs exposed- that was making him so uncomfortable

"Do the parties really get better every year?" he asked quietly

Not that he really cared but...

This rite was still making him nervous and he just couldn't stand the idea that Halloween was going to be so nerve-wracking and dread-filled for the rest of his long life...

"You're worried about later tonight huh?" Stiles guessed softly, his hand reaching out subtlely and gently wrapping around the wolf's, wich caused Derek's heartbeat to speed up and his face to turn a light shade of red

Derek didn't answer him, but he knew the look on his face took care of that for him

"You'll be ok, I was scared my first time too, but once you get started all of that worry just goes away, and it gets progressively easier with every year,"

Laura had said that too

He supposed if they were in agreement about it then maybe...

"So is that all that's gnawing at you? I know how much Halloween means to your family and you've been tense and kinda melancholy all night,"

If even Stiles had noticed, there was no chance that he had hidden it from his sisters and cousin....

_Great..._

"Pretty much," he said with a slight shrug

The look on Stiles' face said exactly how much he didn't believe Derek, but he must have decided not to press, considering that the next moment he had a hand resting on the wolf's back and a bright smile on his face

"Hey, let's get this trick-or-treating underway huh? I see the perfect place to start!"

"Right, I keep meaning to ask you what you mean by that, we aren't going to go to houses are we?"

"Mmm... no, not exactly," Stiles hummed back, nudging Derek to follow him down the street, picking up his pace a little more than when they had been strolling a moment before

Derek bit the inside of his lip, following as quickly as he could wile still holding onto his cloak

"Oh and by the way... I happen to _love_ your costume," Stiles added a second later

Derek's face turned redder, but he allowed a small smile to cross against his features, heart fluttering at the compliment as he followed the other man to wherever he was being lead to

He wasn't sure why Stiles complimenting him made him so happy, only that it did, but he would take it

Maybe it wasn't really just Stiles in the first place, maybe he was just happy to hear a compliment from someone who wasn't a blood relative, he'd settle for that

"There ... the perfect place to start," his companion noted with a grin, nudging towards a small group of kids as they approached a very well decorated house

The house was pretty well done, full of everything from cheap spider webs to tombstones to animatronics, and one of the youngest- a little girl dressed as a princess- was clearly afraid to go near it

The other kids, however, left her behind, and headed up to the house anyway

"What exactly are you suggesting?"

Was Stiles going to go to the house and trick-or-treat for her?

But... why bother when he could make candy himself?

"Watch and learn," the other man winked, strolling easily up to the little girl and pausing just a few inches behind her

As carefully as he could, he bent down and tapped her on the shoulder, and when she turned around, Stiles was gone, and a basket full of candy was in his place

"See?" Stiles preened, making Derek jump as he appeared behind the wolf

"I tricked her, and gave her a treat, now c'mon, let's go find another one, wait until you see the trick with the cat,"

Derek wasn't sure what Stiles was talking about, but he was quickly learning that wherever the ... witch? Mage? Faery? Well... wherever _he_ went, something magical would soon follow

So, naturally, Derek trailed behind him, eager to see whatever he had up his sleeve next

 

~+~

 

"Ohhh is that a Reeses? I'll trade you my Nestle Crunch for it,"

"Stiles... you can make candy out of thin air, why can't you just make another Reeses?" Derek frowned

"Too much work, besides half the fun of Halloween candy is trading the peices you don't like for the peices you do, I mean I LIKE Nestle Crunch but not nearly as much as I like Reeses,"

He heaved a playfully deep sigh, tossing the Reeses over to him and plucking the Nestle Crunch out of his freind's- was Stiles his freind now? It was a little unclear- hand

He wasn't wrong, one of the best things about Halloween- besides eating it, ofcourse- was definitely trading it

"I'll trade you my twizzlers for your Kitkat," he offered

Stiles paused, eyebrows raised as he hesitated in unwrapping his Reeses

"Dude.... I may be the Spirit Of Halloween, but even **I** don't like Twizzlers,"

"Well, _dude_ , I traded you my Reeses, fair is fair,"

"Yeah but a KITKAT for a TWIZZLER? That's like trading an SDCC exclusive figure for your run of the mill POP Vinyl that you can find at Walmart,"

The fact that Derek knew exactly what he meant probably would have been frightening if he hadn't stayed up all night to make sure he won the Ebay auction on the SDCC Wonder Woman Q-Fig back in July....

He pouted, knowing that it was a bad trade

Hell he wouldn't make the trade if he was the one in possession of the Kitkat, why would he expect Stiles to?

"Oh here, quit pouting," Stiles snorted, snatching the little mini packet of Twizzlers and tossing him his Kitkat

Derek smirked, peeling back the wrapper and immediately popping the Kitkat in his mouth

For the first time in days he actually wasn't thinking about the stupid ritual later tonight, he was just... happy

He and Stiles had spent a wile trick-or-treating, and no one had stared at him so he felt a little less self-conscious about his costume, now they were just sitting in the park alone on a picnic blanket that Stiles had produced from nowhere, eating a pile of candy and staring up at the moon

It was nice and peacefull and relaxing

And Stiles was _fun_

He was delightfull actually, if Derek was being completely honest

A little weird and overly enthusiastic, a little spazztic and talked too much, but it was all in a good way

Derek liked him and he was happy that he had decided to come out with Stiles instead of staying at the party where he would probably be watching the clock tick down and half-heartedly eating spider shaped doughnut holes all alone

He was happy and he kind of wanted this to go on forever, or atleast for the rest of the night

 _Definitely_ for the rest of the night

"Mm... it's getting late, we should get back or you'll miss your rite,"

Aw hell....

"Are you sure we have to leave right now?" Derek asked quietly, his shoulders sagging sadly and a look of utter heart-break crossing his face

Stiles' own face fell rather sympathetically, setting down the lollipop he had been getting ready to unwrap and moving a little bit closer, gently wrapping an arm around Derek's shoulders

"Hey... you're going to be ok, I promise,"

Derek knew _he_ was going to be ok, it was just....

Everything else....

"It's not just the ritual that's bugging you, is it?"

Normally Derek wouldn't say anything, this was his pain and his burden and he really just wanted to carry it alone

But something about Stiles was just oddly... compelling...

He found himself wanting to tell Stiles things that he never wanted to tell _anyone_ and his mood was too down right now to resist the urge any longer

"My.. family is dead, except for my sisters and cousin, they burned to death a few years ago in a fire,"

"I.. I know, I mean, I heard about it, I'm so sorry... Halloween reminds you of them huh? You miss them?"

Derek gave a slight nod, inhaling deeply and feeling his shoulders sag

He hadn't talked about this in so long...

Not with his sisters, not with his cousin, not with anyone...

Hell, even after it first happened, he hadn't really talked about it then either...

"I do... and this... this stupid rite thing, it just...."

"It's harder because your mom was supposed to be there?"

Stiles must be psychic as well as a witch (or... mage or elf or faery or whatever the hell he was)

"I get it, my mom freaking LOVED Halloween... she died when I was a kid, Halloween is my favorite day but it .. it always hurts a little bit too, it's always bittersweet,"

The wolf glanced up at him, a type of connection forming in that moment, a bond that very few other people could understand

It soothed the ache just a little bit, it made him feel just a tiny bit better knowing that he and Stiles were on the same level

"It's my fault," he added a second later, shifting in place anxiously

"I ... slept with a hunter named Kate.... I told her some things that I shouldn't have and a few days later my house was gone and my family was dead,"

It felt good to finally say it

It felt good to get it off of his chest, no matter how raw and painfull the wound still was

"Derek..... it wasn't your fault," Stiles said quietly

"It was-"

"It WASN'T, listen to me, I promise you... it was not your fault, you made a mistake but you didn't kill anyone, the fault lays with the woman who betrayed your trust and murdered your family, it was HER choice Derek, not your's, it's HER fault, not your's,"

"Stiles..." he said with a heavy sigh, hanging his head

It was a conversation he had had too many times with Laura already and he wasn't looking to have it again

"I mean it! Look, I know bad people Derek, ok? I know them well, I collect them, it's part of my job description, and you? You are not a bad person, you were tricked, and not in the fun way, you are as much a victim in this as anyone, it is NOT. YOUR FAULT. And I know how hard that is to believe because I was ... I've had guilt of my own over death, trust me, but ... but Derek I swear, this wasn't your fault... won't you believe me? Please?"

No, as much as Stiles wanted him to, as much as a part of Derek wanted to as well...

He couldn't believe him

"Ok... ok, I understand,"

Thank God-

"But.... atleast promise me that you'll stay open-minded to the possibility that someday, far, FAR off in the future, you might maybe POSSIBLY consider believing me then.... ok? Promise me, and I'll give you the last Almond Joy,"

Derek stared up at him skeptickally, but Stiles looked so earnest and sincere and it made him want to give in even though he knew he couldn't

He couldn't believe Stiles, not now, but....

But maybe....

"Ok, far, FAR off in the future, there may possibly, somehow, be something that will make me change my mind, now give me the candy,"

Stiles beamed like Derek had just hung the moon and eagerly handed him the little chocolate peice, hurrying to put the rest of their spoils into a trick-or-treat basket (where was this stuff even coming from?) and rising to his feet

"Good, now come on, we have a ritual to get you to,"

Derek groaned, as if he really needed to be reminded of that, but he took Stiles' hand anyway

And somehow, in some way that he still couldn't understand, he actually felt just a tiny bit ... better, after talking to Stiles

...

Halloween was a weird, weird night....

 

~+~

 

Being back at the party was making his stomach do flip-flops

His anxiety was back in full force and the worst it had been all night

He was caught between wanting to run out of here and never look at the place again and wanting to just hurry up and get to the stupid rite already so he could get it over with

Honestly he wasn't sure wich one was more appealing to him at this point but he was about to come out of his skin either way

And to make matters worse, Stiles had up and disappeared

They had gotten back, Stiles had left Derek at the snack table, and then he was gone, as if the last few hours had meant nothing to him and he was eager to be back at the party talking to other people

People who he probably knew better and had significantly less baggage than Derek

It hurt his heart to know that he was so disposable to someone who he felt so... oddly attached to, but then again it had only been two or three hours and it was stupid that Derek was even this attached in the first place

He should know better

This was how Kate had happened, this was how he always screwed up, this was how all of the crap in his life just got crappier...

He should really, really know better...

The next thing he knew there was the sound of a microphone turning on blasting through the room, that horrible screeching noise that had everyone with even remotely sensitive ears ducking for cover

This was it...

The beginning of the end

He turned around, heart racing and feeling his sisters and cousin suddenly approach behind him, probably for moral support, as he glanced up at the small stage in the back of the room

And much to his shock, there on stage, stood Stiles

That...

He wasn't supposed to be there

They were about to start the rite, the only one who should be up there should be The Spirit Of Halloween....

"Good evening to you all!" Stiles shouted into the microphone, a bright, delighted look on his face as he glanced over at Derek and then back out into the rest of the crowd

"I hope you've all been having fun, this is, after all, our annual Monster Mash!"

Was he really calling it that?

"The one night a year when we can really, TRULY be ourselves for the entire world to see, the one night that really belongs to us, we've been having this celebration for centuries and I'm honored to be able to host it, this is where we can all exist in peace with eachother, where we can be who we are, where born and turned monsters alike can celebrate, where our children become adults, and that's exactly what we're about to celebrate now, there are so many things that define adulthood for ... anyone, of any species or culture, but especially for we monsters, so many of us don't fully come into our true natures until we start entering adulthood and this rite of passage is in many ways both a celebration of fully coming into one's powers as well as celebrating what it means to be yourself, to be part of our community, we are ever happy and ever thankfull every year when we have new passers to celebrate this time, new children blooming into adulthood, it's a celebration of our resilience against a world that doesn't want us here, our sustainability despite the hunters and non-believers and overly enthusiastic religious gun carriers... we have survived witch trials and vampire hunts and werewolf slayings and so many other things... this rite is as much a celebration of THAT as it is of maturity, wich is why we adults still participate in it ourselves, I'd like to welcome our new passers into this sacred ritual, anyone who was at the kid's party upstairs until this year... I'm _so_ happy to have you here,"

At that moment, he looked right at Derek, and he didn't even try to hide it, lingering for a second before turning his attention back to everyone else at the party

"But my dad always told me I talk too much, so without further ado, let's get this party started!!"

Cheers errupted from the crowd, and Derek watched in breathless amazement as Stiles took off his jacket, dropping it down below him and then set down the top hat as well

He watched, stunned, as Stiles pulled off his vest and shirt, feeling his heart began to race

Though... he wasn't sure if it was because of seeing the other's bare chest, or out of anticipation for what would come next

Stiles grinned, his teeth shifting into fangs as his eyes changed colors, irises melting into bright orange as the whites of his eyes sank black, his ears began to point, his nails shifted into claws and carefully slid against his chest, slicing into his flesh and allowing a few streams of blood to trickle out

But the blood didn't last long, not after he started to slip his claws beneath his flesh and pull off large chunks of skin, tossing them to the ground as his true form began to take shape

Beneath the first layer of skin was a much more fantastic layer, almost looking like scales, translucent and reflective, shimmering with light and color...

He was _beautifull_

And Derek realized- like a ton of bricks being dropped on his head- that Stiles had been telling the truth all this time

He _was_ The Spirit Of Halloween....

"Oh my God...."

"Amazing isn't he?" Malia asked with a smirk, gently nudging Derek in the back and prompting him to turn around, forcing him to look away from the beautifull transformation going on on stage

"The door is opening, come on," she prompted

He swallowed, nodding with reluctance and glancing at Stiles one more time before finally following his sisters and cousin towards the massive double doors leading out into the open feild around them

The area reminded him of the preserve, the huge yard his old family home had once been in...

And there in the middle of it all was a large pack of humans, roughly as big as the number of people who had been at the party

"Choose a good one," Laura encouraged gently, giving Derek a soft nudge outwards

He was practically trembling, eyes fearfull and skin covered in goosebumps as he and a few of the other passers for the year started walking forward, some more confident than others

The first one to choose a human from the pack was a young faery, who took her catch out further into the feild, smiling seductively and wispering some manner of things into his ear- things Derek couldn't hear at this distance, not that he wanted to though...

From there, things seemed to go faster and more smoothly, everyone started breaking apart and finding humans to take away from the bonfire party they had been having outside all this time, until finally it came down to the last two of the newbies, Derek and a young vampire next to him, who seemed almost as nervous as he did

He watched the vampire start to lure out his choice, when suddenly a voice caught Derek's attention, forcing him to look over at the person speaking to him instead

"Well aren't you a pretty thing?"

Derek wasn't sure if the guy was being sarcastic or not, but the vibe he was giving off.... it was so predatory and dark.... so... so sinister....

This was the one

This was _definitely_ the one

However, his words were failing him, so all he could do was reach out shyly and hold out his hand, feeling his heartbeat accelerate as the stranger took Derek's hand and started to lead him away

The wolf glanced over his shoulder, a slight wave of embarrassment hitting him at Laura's corny double-thumbs-up she was giving him, but he was mostly relaxed at seeing his family so close by

"You know, I wasn't sure what to expect when your buddy told me about this party, 'get here before midnight and you'll have a great time' ... but it looks like he wasn't kidding,"

God this guy was making Derek's skin crawl

He only had to put up with this for a little longer, just a little longer...

"Hey, I don't have to pay for this do I? I mean... your friend sold it to me as free but this is starting to feel like less of a hook-up and more of a 'money on the table' situation,"

Derek had never been happier in his LIFE than he was when, barely a second later, he heard Stiles' voice radiating through the feild

_"My fellow creatures, I've found for you tonight the worst of the worst, the most terrible offenders I could dig up, murderers, rapists, kidnappers... THEY are the **true** monsters, let your spirits be free now and cleanse them from the earth, send them to Hell where they belong,"_

Derek wasn't sure if the humans could hear Stiles, or if it was just those who had attended the party, but judging by the lack of concern on this idiot's face, he was willing to bet the latter

"No," he said with a small smirk, eyes beginning to glow gold as his teeth and claws shifted

"You don't have to pay,"

The sounds of screaming and shifting and all manner of violence began errupting around him, the man in front of him started to panic, and Derek felt a wave of releif hit him as he shucked off the cloak from the costume and pounced forward, letting the wolf in him take over and celebrate Halloween to it's fullest

 

~+~

 

"See? I told you it wouldn't be so bad,"

Usually Derek hated to admit when Laura was right, but this time...

This time he couldn't be happier

"Yeah, I guess you're right... it's... it's easier once you actually meet them and know how horrible they are, I suppose,"

And it had helped that Stiles had talked to him beforehand, he felt a little less guilty for taking on the rite in the first place, a little less like he didn't deserve it

"Sure it is, when you're just thinking about killing someone it's difficult to process, but once you get into it and realize _who_ you're killing... like I said, it gets easier with time,"

Derek nodded slowly, adjusting the sleeves on his dress and smoothing out the skirts again

It had been a little hard getting back into it after he had shifted into his full wolf form and nearly tore it, but he had managed eventually

"I don't know about you guys, but I just wish there was a way to go to a party for _everyone_ in the supernatural community instead of just the ones in Beacon Hills, you'd think Stiles would be able to organize something like that,"

"I don't know if there would ever be a space that big," Laura chuckled

Derek fastened the cloak around his neck again, glancing around curiously and frowning when he didn't see the spirit's familiar face

"Speaking of Stiles, have you seen him anywhere?"

"Mm, I think he was cleaning up his skin from the stage last time I saw him, he might still be inside," Cora offered

Derek nodded slowly, offering the girls a small smile before starting back towards the building

"Thanks, I'll catch up with you guys later ok? I just want to talk to him for a minute,"

"'Talk to him', sure," Cora teased with a smirk

Laura rolled her eyes, nudging her younger sister towards the car and grabbing Malia by the arm to drag her along as well

"Ofcourse, see you at home Derek! Just call if you need anything!"

"I will," Derek promised with a nod, inhaling deeply and making his way back into the party hall

Sure enough, there was Stiles, picking up bits of flesh from the stage and chucking them into a garbage bag

It was surreal in it's domesticity and it didn't really fit with the fact that he was literally _The Spirit Of Halloween_ for God's sake...

"Is that really how The Great Spirit should be spending the rest of Halloween night?" he teased, prompting Stiles to turn around and smirk back at him

"It's after midnight, Halloween is over,"

"It isn't over until you go to sleep," Derek shrugged back

And Stiles....

Stiles lit up like a Jack-O-Lantern, like Derek had just told him something he either had never heard before, or that he said all the time

And honestly, it was hard to tell wich

"You, my freind, are speaking to my true philosophy, what are you doing the rest of the night?"

"Nothing," Derek shrugged back

Stiles was off that stage so fast it could have made Derek's head spin, and in only a few seconds he had Derek by the arm and was dragging him outside again with all the excitement of a child

It was refreshing and calming and just.... NICE.... and Derek didn't even care where they were going or what they were doing

At this point he was confident that he would have a good time no matter what Stiles did with him

 

~+~

 

He was not disappointed

"So if you're the only Spirit, then what about the rest of the world? Do you just ... stay in Beacon Hills every year to host this party? Doesn't the rest of the world NEED you or something?"

Stiles shrugged, taking a sip of his milkshake and leaning back in the booth

They were at a fast-food place, it was past one in the morning, and they were the only ones there besides what Derek could sniff out as two employees

But somehow he was still having an incredibly good time

"I take Halloween spirit where it needs to go," he shrugged

"I have a bunch of lackies who host parties around the rest of the world, I travel sometimes during the year when I'm needed- OBVIOUSLY alot during October- but mostly it's the lackies who do it, think of them like Santa's elves but instead of elves they're goblins,"

Ok then

"To be honest, I wouldn't be in this position if I had siblings, but my dad only had me and my grandparents only had him so we've been handling things single-pringle style for a wile now, I'm hoping to change that when I have kids though, I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm not gonna retire any time soon, but when I DO eventually retire I'm going to have like... a ball park full of kids to take over for me,"

"Oh will you now?" Derek snorted with a smirk

Sure it wasn't _impossible_ for a practically immortal being to have alot of kids, and as a rule, the supernatural community it's self tended to have bigger families than humans just because most species had incredibly long lifespans

Derek's family had been huge at one point, before his grandmother had married a human and- ... well, that was a long story

But still, a ballpark full seemed like an exaggeration

"And where are you going to find yourself a partner to _give_ you that many?"

Stiles leaned back, eyebrows raised casually as he put his cup down

"Well," he mused as Derek picked up his own milkshake and took a sip

"How many do you want?"

Derek choked

He nearly shot milkshake out of his nose

He thanked every higher power he could think of that he didn't

"Um..."

"I mean, you know, I could always be the one who gets pregnant, if my partner'd prefer it, or hell we could take turns, that'd be fun,"

"Um......"

"Could you imagine how many bad-doers I'd have to round up every year if I had that many kids though? Constant maturings, it's a good thing Beacon Hills is practically cursed with scumbags right?"

"Um.........."

"Oh... sorry, am I making you uncomfortable? Am I talking too much?"

"No no it isn't that," Derek assured quickly

"I just... I've never heard anyone talk so openly about this stuff before, that's all, it's... it's kind of neat,"

"I take it that's because you like talking about the 'having kids' thing too and people don't usually want to listen?"

"Something like that,"

More like Derek had never really tried and had always been too shy to bring it up in a conversation with anyone, much less someone he had only known for half a night

But what Stiles said worked too

"So what happens to spirits once they retire?" he asked, changing the subject before things could get too personal

"Same thing that happens to anyone once they retire, they pass down the business to the next best person and spend their time playing golf and wearing black socks with Bermuda shorts,"

That.... wasn't at all what he had been expecting, and yet somehow it seemed to fit...

"Does your dad still participate in Halloween?"

"Ofcourse! Right now he's in Sleepy Hollow playing Headless Horseman, that was always his favorite gag,"

"And the residents of Sleepy Hollow must be thrilled to have him," Derek teased

Stiles apparently found that hilarious considering how hard he laughed, but unfortunately the look of joy on his face faded to one of bittersweetness when he glanced up at the clock and took note of the time

"They're about to close.... I guess your sisters probably want you home huh?"

"I'm not a child Stiles, I can stay out as late as I want," Derek snorted back

Although it did certainly present a problem of what they were going to do at this point...

It was too late for hardly anything else to be open or for any trick-or-treaters to be out wandering around, but Derek didn't want to quit just yet, he didn't want this night to end just yet

...

Huh, ironic

"Well in that case... maybe you'd like to come over and watch a movie with me?" Stiles offered with a slight grin

Derek's eyes lit up, smiling a little bit more at him

"I would love that,"

 

~+~

 

Derek didn't know what his life had become

He was laying here on the couch of someone who was still little more than a stranger, letting Stiles spoon him wile they watched the last half of Trick R' Treat with candy wrappers all over the floor, having mostly missed the trash can, and Derek was...

Derek was exhausted

His eyes were straining to stay open, he kept dozing in and out of sleep, jostling himself awake every few moments

If Stiles had any heightened senses at all - and it was still kind of unclear over weather he did or not- he most certainly was aware of Derek's struggle

Hell even a HUMAN would probably be aware of Derek's struggle

He needed so badly to sleep, especially after the last several nights of restless tossing and turning and battling with insomnia, he was too exhausted to even speak anymore, but he didn't want this night to end

He didn't want to say goodbye to Stiles

It was such a weird thing, being so attached to someone he had only met a few hours ago, but Stiles made him feel good

He made him feel safe and comfortable and at home in some way, he made Derek really enjoy Halloween again and lifted some of the sadness away and he deserved a freaking AWARD for that alone

He didn't want the night to end, but he knew if he fell asleep it would have to...

Even still, when he felt Stiles gently curl their fingers together, the spirit's thumb tracing soothingly over the back of Derek's hand, the werewolf KNEW he was done for

And sure enough, not a minute later, he was out cold

 

~+~

 

"Morning Sleepyhead,"

Derek's eyes cracked open slowly, feeling kind of dizzy and heavy and not all that sure where he was, that kind of early morning fog that would stay with him for far longer than he really wanted to admit

And then, all of a sudden, it all came crashing down into him at once and he sprang up, looking around the unfamiliar room and turning his head to catch sight of Stiles, who was smiling at him with amusement

"You must have been exhausted, it's already after one in the afternoon,"

Derek felt his face starting to turn red

There were so many questions that he needed to ask, so many loose ends he wanted tied up, but perhaps the most concerning was that he wasn't in his costume anymore, instead he was wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt

He glanced down at the clothes for a breif moment before shooting Stiles a concerned look and watching the spirit put his hands up in surrender at the unasked question

"I didn't touch your clothes, I woke you up not long after you fell asleep and you managed to get changed yourself, I gave you some of my dad's old clothes, just... don't freak out,"

He nodded slowly, feeling a little bit more at peace and glancing around the room again, the information starting to sink in that he had slept here the night before

"Did you sleep with me? I mean... in this bed,"

The bed smelled like Stiles, it smelled FRESHLY like Stiles, like Derek's scent HADN'T layered over it in the past twenty-four hours but more... blended with it

"I .. yeah, but only because you asked me to, I tried to leave when I laid you down and you insisted I stay so... oh and I called your sister, by the way, she was texting you all morning so I called to let her know you were ok,"

Derek fidgeted a little, face turning even redder as he finally glanced up at Stiles

"Thank you.... for everything, really.... you've done more for me than you can possibly imagine and I just..... thank you,"

"It really, really wasn't a problem," Stiles said with a gentle smile, sitting down next to Derek and hesitantly placing his hand over the wolf's leg, squeezing gently and glancing up at him

"I had an amazing time and I really, really enjoy your company,"

"You do?"

No one ever enjoyed Derek's company....

"I really do," he promised softly

"In fact, I would really like to spend more time with you ... if that's ok,"

Derek smiled brightly, warmly, allowing himself to relax as he leaned in a little bit more

"I would say that's more than ok," he promised, closing his eyes and feeling a slight shudder of pleasure and happiness shoot through him at the sensation of Stiles' lips against his

The kiss was soft and chaste, but it was warm and it promised eternities of more ahead

More passion, more love, more Halloween...

More of _Stiles_....

And that was more than enough for him

"Just one thing," Stiles mused, leaning a little closer

"Now that it's November 1st, you aren't going to throw me over for The Spirit Of Christmas are you? Because that guy is SO full of himself,"

Derek released a laugh, shaking his head fondly and leaning to give Stiles another kiss

"Believe me, you've got nothing to worry about, Christmas has NOTHING over Halloween,"


End file.
